Airplane



J. H. DAVIS July 23, 1929.

AIRPLANE Filed Dec. 5, 1927.

IN VEN TOR. m

ATTORNEYS Patented July 23, 1929.

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JOHN H. DAVIS, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSZGNOR, BY ASSIGN- MEETS, T9 AIR LTNE TRANSPORTATION COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENIQEYL- VANIA, A CORPORATION OF DELAXVAEE.

AIRPLANE.

Application. filed December ly of the propeller, or in connection with the propeller as desired. 7

Another object of the invention s to en able the airplane when starting to liftitself so as to free it from the dra or traction of the earth; so that a heavily laden plane equipped with my invention w ien starting can readily clear obstructions which other-' wise it would not be able to clear because of the load it carries.

Another object is to enable an airplane. when descending to arrest its vertical movement as it nears the ground, thereby preventing the shocks and danger of eothe plane which would occur if it was dropping too rapidly when landing.

A further object of the invention is to provide an airplane with a plurality of air'beat.

' ers which can be operated as hereinafter e plained; and other minor objects of the invention and the advantages thereof will be hereinafter set forth.

The accompanying drawings diagrammatically illustrate one embodiment of the inve'ntion as applied to an airplane and I will describe the same with reference thereto to enable others skilled in the art to adopt and use the invention. The essentials of theinvention and novel combinations ofparts and novel features of construction forallof which protection is desired are summarized in the claims.

in said drawings:

Fig. l is a diagrammatical top plan'view, partly broken away, of a portion of an airplane equipped with one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail plan view of one of the air heaters and its operating devices.

Fig. 3 is a side view of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4: is a detail View similar to Fig. 3.

5, 1927. Serial NO. 237,861;

' Figs. 5 and 6 are details.

In the drawing F represents the fuselage and the wing of an airplane, which may be of any desired type. Arranged on the under surface of the wing W are a series of w rat I term air boaters 1. These are preferably arranged in rows extending transversely of the wings, as shown in Fig. 1 and the air heaters in adjacent rows are preferably arranged in quincunx order. The air beater-s are shown, as circular but may be of any desired contour. Each air beater is preferably arranged within an opening in the underside of the wing lV' which openings correspond in contour with the air heaters. The air heaters in normal or lowered position (Fig. 3) close the openingsand the lower or underside of the air boaters, when in lowered position, are preferably flush with the lower or underside of the wing, and form a continuation of the lower surface of the underside of the wing as in Fig. 3.

The air heaters 1 are preferably arranged to move within housings 1 which surround the openings and are adapted to prevent air spreading or escaping laterally from beneath the under surface of the air beaters when the latter are depressed, as hereinafter explained.

The air heaters may be moved facewise by any suitable means-In the construction shown, for example, each air beater 1 is connected by a link 1? to a crank arm 2* on a rock shaft 2 extending longitudinally of the row of air heaters and transversely of the wing(see Fig. 1) and by rocking said shaftall of the heaters in the row can be simul taneously raised or lowered.

The shaft 2 may be rocked by any suitable means. In the construction shown a pull rod. 3 is pivotally connected at one end to a cranl arm 2 on shaft 2 and extends longitudinally Y of and within the wing to the fuselage, as shown in the drawings. These rods 3 are normally pulley outward (in a direction away from the fuselage) by means of springs 3 attached to the rods and to a relatively adjacent fixed point as indicated in Fig. 2, and would normally holdthe' air heaters inlowered position as shown in Fig. 3. v

To operate the air beaters the rods 3 may be drawn inward and then released by any struction shown, each rod 3 is provided on its inner end within the fuselage with a slotted head 3 which is adapted to straddle-the edge of an adjacent rotatable disk -t-he edge of the disk guiding the head, and the head is adapted to be engaged by pins P mounted on a disk A, which may be driven from the motor by any suitable means. Each disk is provided with a plurality of pins 4, four being shown in the drawing, which, as the disk rotates, suc

cessively engage the head 3 and draw the rod 3 outward, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 3, and thereby raise the related series of air heaters to the position shown in Fig. 4. But, during the continued rotation of the disk, the pins 4 will disengage the heads 3 and springs 3 will move the rod 3 outward with great rapidity thereby rocking the shaft 2 and lowering the air heaters with great rapidity and force from the position shown in Fig. 4: to the position shown in full lines in Fig. 3.

The inner'ends of rods 3 may be slidably supported by a suitable guide; as indicated at 3 in Figs. 2 and 4. The outward move- -ment of the rods 3 may be arrested, when the lower surface of the heaters is flush with the lower surface of the wing, by any suitable means. are adapted to engage the side of the fuse lage through which the rods pass.

Each transverse row of air heaters may be operated independently of the other row, and the air heaters if of an unyielding type should he raised slowly, that is perpendicularly to the lower surface of the wing, but if of any type should be lowered with great'rapidity and force. The rows of air heaters may be operated successively or simultaneously, or alternately, as may be most desirable according to the size and arrangement of the air heaters.

' In the construction illustrated when the rods 3 are moved inwardly, (or to the left in Fig. 3) the air heaters 1 would be raised. and. when the rods are released the springs 3 will face them rapidly outward and the air heaters will he forcibly and rapidly lowered to the position indicated. in Fig. 4c.

The rapid downward movement of the air heaters exerts a great lifting effect upon the second it should exert a lifting force or power.

equal to 312 lbs. per sq. ft. upon the wing. In. practical tests of model apparatus an air beater having an area of 6 x 8 operated by a spring at a speed of 176 feet persecond has a lifting eifect of lbs. per sq. ft.

An important feature to be borne in mind is that the air heaters must he so constructed As shown sto.) lu -s 3 on the rods.

or raised so slowly that they exertno back pressure or downward pull on the wing; but they should be lowered with great rapidity and exert their full surface area to impart an upward lift to the wing.

The shaft 4 may be driven by any suitable means. As indicated in the drawings it may be driven by means of gears P from a pinion m on the shaft of the motor M. Preferably a clutch 4 of any suitable type is placed between the gear P and the shaft 4" which clutch can be operatively controlled hya link 4 connected to a hand lever t adjacent the seat of the operator. The object of this is to enable the operator to throw the air heaters at either side of the fuselage into or out of operation at will, and if desired he can stop the operation of the heaters on one side of the wing while the heaters on the other side of the wing are in operation,-this would enable him to control the lateral stability of the plane if the aerolons fail to operate properly.

As stated I preferably operate rows of air heaters successively onstarting from each end of the wing toward the fuselage. This can be easily accomplished by slightly angularly displacing the successive disks on shaft at, or the pins on the disks, so that the rods 3 will be operated successively instead of simultaneously; but the rods could be made to operate the air heaters sin'iultaneously or. in any desired groups.

In case it is necessary to volplane it would be desirable to have all the heaters in lowered position, as indicated in Fig. 3, so that the under surface of the wing would appear smooth and unbroken. For this purpose means should he provided whereby, if desired, the rods 3 could he disengaged from their positively actuating devices. VVhereupon the springs 3 would immediately throw the rods inward to the position shown in Figure 3 so that the under surface of the movement would appear smooth and unbroken. One means for this purpose would he to make the guide 3 vertically movable, so that if it was desired to disengage the heads 3 from the pins 4? said guide 3 could he moved up sufliciently to raise the rods and disengage the heads 3 from the pins 4: This could be accomphshed in varlous ways. For instance as shown in Figure 6, the guide 3 could he supported on toggles 3 operatively connected by a rod 3 connected to the hand lever so that when this lever is operated to throw out the clutch, the guide 3 would be raised and lift therods 3 sufliciently to clear the heads 3 from the pins lVhen the lever 4 is shifted to engage the clutch, the guide 3 would be lowered and permit heads 3 to again engage the pins 4 WVhile I have shown the air heaters ascylindric in contour and moving in cylindric housings my invention is not restricted to any particular form or contour of the air heaters or the chambers. The air heaters may he adapted to he reciprocated or he hinged and vibrate, or he diaphragms, within the scope of the invention, the essential features of the invention being the provision of a plurality of air heaters which can be operated in the manner described to exert a great vertical lifting power upon the wing when starting the machine, or to cushion or arrest the vertical dropping of the machine upon the earth in making a landing. The air heaters could be arranged to operate at an inclination to the wing so that in addition to the lifting effect they would also tend to propel the plane forward, but this propulsive effect is not so important in the present case as the lifting effect.

I claim 1. In an airplane, a plurality of air heaters on the wing means for operating these air heaters to lift the wing and means for preventing lateral diffusion of the displaced air during the descent of the heaters.

2. In an airplane, a plurality of air heaters on the underside of the wing, means for operating these air heaters with great rapidity and means for preventing lateral diffusion of the displaced air during the descent of the heaters.

3. In an airplane, a seriesof small air heaters disposed on the under surface of the wing, means for rapidly movingthe air heaters in a direction to exert a lifting effect upon the wing and means for preventing lateral diffusion of the displaced air during the descent of the heaters. 4

1. In an airplane, a series of air heaters arranged on the wing, means for depressing the air hreaters with great rapidity to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the air heaters as they are depressed.

5. In an airplane, a plurality of air heaters, and means for operating these air heaters at great rapidity on one stroke and slowly on the opposite stroke.

6. In an airplane, a series of air heaters disposed on the under surface of the wing, and means for rapidly depressing the air heaters to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means for more slowly raising the air heaters.

7. In an airplane, a series of air heaters arranged in quincunx order on the underside of the wing, means for depressing the air heaters with great rapidity to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the air heaters as they are depressed.

8. In an airplane, air heaters disposed in quincunx order on the under surface of the wing, means for rapidly depressing the air heaters to exert a lifting effect upon the wing.

9. In an airplane, a wing provided with a plurality of openings, air heaters arranged in said openings, means for moving the air heaters with great rapidity to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the heaters when the same are depressed.

10. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of openings in its under surface, air heaters arranged to move within these openings, means for moving the air heaters with great rapidity in a direction to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and housings around the openings to prevent lateral escape of air heneath the heaters.

11. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of air heaters, means for depressing the air heaters with great rapidity to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, means for retracting the air heaters slowly, and means to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the air heaters as they are depressed.

12. In an airplane, rows of air heaters disposed in quincunx order on the under surface of the wing, means for rapidly depressing the air heaters to exert alifting effect upon'the wing, and means for slowly raising the air heaters.

13. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of openings, air heaters arranged in said openings, means for moving the air heaters with great rapidity in one direction to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, means for moving the air heaters slowly in the other direction, housings around the openings in the wing to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the heaters when the same are depressed.

14. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of openings in its undersurface, air heaters arranged to move within these openings, means for moving the air heaters slowly in one direction, and for moving the air heaters with great rapidity in the other clirection to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and housings around the openings in the wing to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the heaters when the same are depressed.

15. In an airplane, a plurality of rows of air heaters on the underside of the wing and means for successively operating the rows of air heaters to lift the wing.

16. In an airplane, a plurality of air heaters and means for successively operating the air heaters with great rapidity on one stroke and slowly on the opposite stroke.

17. In an airplane, a series of rows of air heaters disposed on the under surface of the wing, means for successively rapidly depress ing air heaters to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means for more slowly raising the air heaters.

18. In an airplane, a series of rows of air heaters arranged on the underside of the wing, means for successively depressing the rows of air heaters with great rapidity to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and means for raising the depressed air heaters more slowly.

19. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of rows of openings, air heaters arranged in said openings, and means for suc cessively moving the air heaters in different rows to exert a lifting effect upon the wing.

20. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of rows of openings, air heaters arranged in saidopenings, and means for successively moving the air heaters in different rows to exert a lifting effect upon the wing and means to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the heaters when the same are depressed.

21. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of rows of openings in its under surface, air heaters arranged to move within these openings and for successively moving the airheaters in different rows with great rapidity in one direction to exert a lifing effect upon the wing, and means for moving the air heaters slowly in the opposite direction.

, 22. In an airplane, a wing provided with a series of rows of openings in its under surrapidiy in one direction to exert a lifting effect upon the wing, and meansfor moving the air heaters slowly in the opposite direction, housings around the openingsin the wing to prevent lateral escape of air beneath the heaters when the same are depressed.

23. In an airplane, an air heater, means for moving the air heater with great velocity on one stroke and 'relativelyslowly on the opposite stroke, and means for preventing lateral diffusion of the displaced air during the descent of the heater.

24;. In an airplane, a plurality of air heaters,1neans for operating these air heaters at great velocity on one stroke and relatively slowly on the opposite stroke, and means for preventing lateral diffusion of the displaced air during the descent of the heaters.

- J OHN I-I. DAVIS 

